“Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.” – C.S. Lewis
On May 7, 1867 Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel patented dynamite in England. This was the first of three patents he would receive for the explosive. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 106 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can be used for any of their one, two, or three-day course (a $1,095 …
The latest meme created by JWR: Meme Text: 14 Gun-Hating State Governments are About to Be Taught a Lesson On the Blank Page History, Text, and Tradition of Pre-1787 Gun Laws News Links: Supreme Court Requests Brief in Case Against Illinois Town’s ‘Assault Weapons’ Ban. Mark W. Smith: JUSTICE BARRETT INVESTIGATES FLAWED federal court ruling (wrongly) upholding AR-15 & magazine bans When a Supreme Court Justice Wants to Pick a Fight Over Assault Weapon Bans. JWR’s Comment: The restrictive gun and magazine laws in those 14 states will fail the Bruen Test, because there were hardly any restrictions on the …
“Now when he had ended all his sayings in the audience of the people, he entered into Capernaum. And a certain centurion’s servant, who was dear unto him, was sick, and ready to die. And when he heard of Jesus, he sent unto him the elders of the Jews, beseeching him that he would come and heal his servant. And when they came to Jesus, they besought him instantly, saying, That he was worthy for whom he should do this: For he loveth our nation, and he hath built us a synagogue. Then Jesus went with them. And when he …
May 6th is the birthday of Tuvia Bielski. (Born 1906, died 1987.) You may remember him as the main character in the movie Defiance, portrayed by Daniel Craig. This movie was based on the book Defiance: The Bielski Partisans by Nechama Tec. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 106 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day …
To be prepared for a crisis, every Prepper must establish goals and make both long-term and short-term plans. In this column, the SurvivalBlog editors review their week’s prep activities and planned prep activities for the coming week. These range from healthcare and gear purchases to gardening, ranch improvements, bug-out bag fine-tuning, and food storage. This is something akin to our Retreat Owner Profiles, but written incrementally and in detail, throughout the year. We always welcome you to share your own successes and wisdom in your e-mailed letters. We post many of those –or excerpts thereof — in the Odds ‘n …
“Remember, O Lord, what is come upon us: consider, and behold our reproach. Our inheritance is turned to strangers, our houses to aliens. We are orphans and fatherless, our mothers are as widows. We have drunken our water for money; our wood is sold unto us. Our necks are under persecution: we labour, and have no rest. We have given the hand to the Egyptians, and to the Assyrians, to be satisfied with bread. Our fathers have sinned, and are not; and we have borne their iniquities. Servants have ruled over us: there is none that doth deliver us out …
This is the birthday of Pat Frank (1908-1964). This was the pen name of newspaper journalist Harry Hart Frank. His novel Alas, Babylon is a survivalist classic. His personal life was marred by alcoholism, but his writing is admired and still surprisingly popular, today. (Alas, Babylon is still in print, after 64 years!) As an homage to Pat Frank, one of the settings in my novel Expatriates is Mt. Dora, Florida, which was fictionalized by Pat Frank as Fort Repose in Alas, Babylon. — Perhaps of interest to survivalists, the new Silo television series will begin streaming today (May 5, …
Here are the latest news items and commentary on current economics news, market trends, stocks, investing opportunities, and the precious metals markets. In this column, JWR also covers hedges, derivatives, and various obscura. Most of these items are from JWR’s “tangibles heavy” contrarian perspective. Today, a further examination of the developing global banking crisis. (See the Economy & Finance section.) Precious Metals: Spot silver is looking quite bullish, up more than 5% for the week to $26.29 per Troy ounce, as of Thursday afternoon. o o o An interview with Jeffrey Tucker: The Fed is Trapped: This Recession Will Be …
“While boasting of our noble deeds, we are careful to conceal the ugly fact that by an iniquitous money system we have nationalized a system of oppression which, though more refined, is not less cruel than the old system of chattel slavery.” – Horace Greeley
May 4th is informally known as “Star Wars Day”, because of a silly play on words: “May The Fourth Be With You.” May 4th 1943: A patent for helicopter controls was obtained by Igor Sikorsky. Sikorsky invented fixed-winged and multi-engined aircraft, transoceanic flying boats and helicopters. On May 4, 1415, reformers John Wycliffe and Jan Hus were condemned as heretics at the Council of Constance. The death of Hus inspired the later Hussite revolution in Bohemia. — I just read that Ready Made Resources — an advertiser that has been with us since SurvivalBlog’s launch — is running a special …
SurvivalBlog presents another edition of The Survivalist’s Odds ‘n Sods. This column is a collection of news bits and pieces that are relevant to the modern survivalist and prepper from JWR. Our goal is to educate our readers, to help them to recognize emerging threats, and to be better prepared for both disasters and negative societal trends. You can’t mitigate a risk if you haven’t first identified a risk. In today’s column, we look at Switzerland’s extensive bunker infrastructure. Why Switzerland Has 374,142 Bunkers A fascinating half-hour YouTube video: Why Switzerland Has 374,142 Bunkers (and likely more). Full Disclosure: NordVPN …
“At times like the present, when the evils of unsound finance threaten us, the speculator may anticipate a harvest gathered from the misfortune of others, the capitalist may protect himself by hoarding or may even find profit from the fluctuations of values, but the wage earner – the first to be injured by a depreciated currency – is practically defenseless.” – President Grover Cleveland
May 3rd, 1952 was the birthday of Pastor Chuck Baldwin. He has done yeoman service in promoting the American Redoubt movement. — I just heard that Canada’s troubadour Gordon Lightfoot has passed away at the age of 84. — SurvivalBlog Writing Contest Today we present another entry for Round 106 of the SurvivalBlog non-fiction writing contest. The prizes for this round include: First Prize: The photovoltaic power specialists at Quantum Harvest LLC are providing a store-wide 10% off coupon. Depending on the model chosen, this could be worth more than $2000. A Gunsite Academy Three Day Course Certificate. This can …
This weekly Snippets column is a collection of short items: responses to posted articles, practical self-sufficiency items, how-tos, lessons learned, tips and tricks, and news items — both from readers and from SurvivalBlog’s editors. Note that we may select some long e-mails for posting as separate letters. — Video with some good advice from Austin-based building contractor Matt Risinger: Three Generator Pro Tips (from a mini-Prepper). o o o Reader Ron M. suggested a brief, informative video describing NIJ body armor levels. o o o T.M. forwarded this news link: General Mills Announces Recalls For Bleached, Unbleached Gold Medal Flour. …
